System comprising a transport box and/or sales box for footwear and a bag

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a system ( 1 ) comprising a transport box and/or sales box ( 2 ) for footwear, especially for athletic shoes, and a bag ( 3 ) made of a resilient material. To provide a system which has less weight, which requires less material and which is more environmentally and consumer friendly the invention proposes that the box ( 2 ) has a receiving space ( 4 ) for the footwear which is at least partially delimited by a base panel ( 5 ) and four walls ( 6, 7, 8, 9 ) extending from the base panel ( 5 ), wherein at least one wall ( 6 ) has an aperture ( 12 ), wherein the bag ( 3 ) has a receiving space for receiving the box ( 2 ), wherein the bag ( 3 ) has a handle ( 11 ) for carrying the bag ( 3 ), wherein the box ( 2 ) and the bag ( 3 ) are designed to lead the handle ( 11 ) through the aperture ( 12 ) in one of the walls ( 6 ) when the box ( 2 ) is in the bag ( 3 ). Furthermore, the invention relates to a transport box and/or sales box for footwear.

The invention relates to a system comprising a transport box and/orsales box for footwear, especially for athletic shoes, and a bag made ofa resilient material. Furthermore, the invention relates to a transportbox and/or sales box for footwear.

For transportation and sales presentation specifically footwear must bepacked in suitable containers. Shoe boxes made from carton are wellknown in the art.

Furthermore, it is known from U.S. Pat. No. 7,581,643 B2 to use bags forpacking a pair of sports shoes which in turn are then packed intocontainers for transport and sales presentation.

Normally, a tradeoff must be done between an optimized transportcontainer for the sport shoes to allow cost efficient logistics at onehand and an attractive appearance of the container when the shoes arepresented during sales at the other hand.

Other aspects of a transport system for footwear are the space which isrequired for transport and for presenting the footwear in the shop.Also, the required amount of material for producing the system is anissue. Furthermore, it is a drawback of existing systems for transportand for the sales of footwear that the systems are not sufficientlyenvironmental and consumer friendly.

Thus, it is the object of the invention to propose a system comprising atransport box and/or sales box for footwear and a bag according to thekind mentioned above which allows an efficient handling and transport ofthe footwear and which is also suitable to present the footwear in apleasant way. The system should be producible in a cost efficient wayand should have less weight, which requires less material and which ismore environmentally and consumer friendly than pre-known systems.

The solution of this object comes up with a system comprising atransport box and/or sales box for footwear, especially for athleticshoes, and a bag made of a resilient material, wherein the box has areceiving space for the footwear which is at least partially delimitedby a base panel and at least two, preferably four walls extending fromthe base panel, wherein at least one wall has an aperture, wherein thebag has a receiving space for receiving the box, wherein the bag has ahandle for carrying the bag, wherein the box and the bag are designed tolead the handle through the aperture in one of the walls when the box isin the bag.

Preferably, the aperture is arranged in the middle of the wall.Furthermore, a slot can be arranged in the wall which extends from theaperture to an end of the wall which is remote from the base panel. Apreferred solution suggests that the aperture has a circular shape seenin a direction perpendicular to the wall. Alternatively, the shape canalso be oval or rectangular.

The box can have a divider wall which is connected with the base panelwherein the divider wall is arranged substantial perpendicular to thebase panel and wherein the divider wall divides the receiving space intotwo parts. The divider wall can be made of a part of the base panelwhich part is cut out from the base panel and which is bent out of theplane of the base panel into a plane perpendicular to the base panel.

The divider wall can further have at least one cutout in the end regionremote from the base panel which cutout forms an opening in the dividerwall for carrying the box. The box can have a longitudinal axis, whereinthe divider wall extends under an angle between 20° and 40° to thelongitudinal axial. The box can be made of a flat panel element, whereinthe walls and the divider wall are formed by bending parts of the flatpanel element out of the plane of the flat panel element and wherein thebase panel is a part of the flat panel element. The flat panel elementcan be a part which is punched out of a flat base material. At least oneof the walls can be made of two wall parts which are formed by the flatpanel element and which are folded together against each other.

To facilitate the assembly of the box folds and/or punched out sectionscan be arranged between the base panel and the walls and also betweenthe wall parts.

Preferably, at least two walls, preferably all walls extend to the basepanel under an angle between 80° and 89°, especially between 82° and86°. So, stacking of the boxes is significantly easier.

The corners of the base panel can be rounded. The box consistspreferably of a paperboard or cardboard.

The transport box and/or sales box can also be used without the bag. Inthis case it is a very beneficial feature of the box when it has adivider wall which is connected with the base panel, wherein the dividerwall is arranged substantial perpendicular to the base panel and whereinthe divider wall divides the receiving space into two parts.

The box can have all design features as mentioned above.

Thus, the present invention relates to the field of transport containersand carriers for footwear, and more particularly, to transportcontainers and carriers that provide less bulk, material and are moreenvironmentally and consumer friendly. The transport container of thepresent invention includes a shell (i. e. the box) having two to fourside walls surrounding a base and center handle/divider such that itallows for the easy assembly, placement and removal of products such as,for example, a pair of shoes.

The transport container or shell further includes at least one opensection that is designed to accommodate footwear housed within thetransport container. The shell further includes a back and front wallthat for convenience may be interchangeable. The back and front wallsare generally double walls bisected by a living hinge, although singlewall construction is contemplated. The back and front walls provide areasized to accommodate labels and other indicia placement, and includecorner sections that may be eased to exclude acute corners that couldsnag upon the footwear carrier bag. The handle/divider is generallyplaced in a midrange area of the base extending into the open section.The handle/divider may be used to carry the shell and/or separatefootwear within the shell.

The transport container further includes one or more hinged portions,for example, a living hinge that facilitates the manufacture, transportand stacking of the transport containers. The shape and design of thetransport containers within the present invention allow storage of suchby stacking when the transport container is in open or in used position.More specifically, in an open position and by way of the one or moreliving hinges, the walls of the transport containers are angled in sucha manner to allow angled stackability. By way of example, the verticalwalls of the transport containers may be angled toward the center (orhandle/divider) by several degrees, e. g. 6 degrees. Having the verticalwalls fold in toward the center in this manner strengthens the shell aswell as reduces the opening at the top. Such design provides forpreventing stacked shells from falling into each other and pushes upagainst the product within the shell to thereby increase friction uponthe product and reduce any likelihood of the product shifting or fallingout of the shell.

The front and back walls of the shell includes at least one cutoutportion, e. g. finger pull, to aid in assembly and disassembly of theshell. In a preferred embodiment, the back and/or front walls include aslotted portion for receiving the handle of locking portion of thefootwear carrier bag. The cutout portion aids in the locking andunlocking of the bag to the shell when the entire transport carrier isassembled. When the handle of the bag containing the footwear is lockedin place using the slot and cutout (aperture), such arrangement providesfor securing the footwear and keeping the footwear clean from debris ordust during shipping, stocking or layout at a store. It is contemplatedthat the finger hole cutout (aperture) may be located in an area that isnot obstructed by the bag so as to aid in the locking and unlocking ofthe bag to the shell.

The transport container may further include features such as holes,appendages, channels and the like for accommodating the bay, labels andmanipulation by a user. For example, when the footwear is placed intothe box, the footwear is placed in a manner that aligns the lacedportions of the footwear against the handle. This arrangement aid inaligning the handle in a substantially vertical direction with respectto the base for use as a handle by a user.:

Assembly of the transport containers is efficient and involves obtaininga flattened or partially flattened shell, unfolding or moving thehandle/divider up toward the open space and folding the back, frontwalls and sidewalls into a container configuration. If the back andfront walls are double sided, the back and front walls should be foldedalong the living hinge and then positioned in place. Tabbed portions ofthe sidewalls can be placed within or along the back and front walls tosecure the assembled configuration.

The transport container is designed such that it is lighter and requiresless material than a prior art cardboard shoe box. The transportcontainer can be fabricated of pulp, molded fiber, recycled paper ormore rigid lightweight components such as plastic. The transportcontainer is preferably durable and reusable by a retailer or consumerand enables a retailer to stack or place the containers in a securemanner. Shipping of footwear, for example, would not require the use ofprior art shoe boxes and would thus be less expensive and moreecologically friendly. Once purchased by a consumer, the shell is sodesigned to aid in its disassembly to make it easier for the consumer todispose of properly and/or recycle. Also, in the case that the shellremains in the store it can be easier disassembled by the shop staff. Tothat end, each of the back and/or front walls may include an additionalcutout for use as a finger pull to aid in disassembly. It is alsocontemplated that the cutout used for locking the bag handle may be usedas the finger pull to disassembly the shell.

The footwear carrier system of the present invention eliminates the needfor additional shopping bags or cartons at the distributor, wholesale,retail or user level. As the footwear carrier does away with the solebox type carriers, it is up to 40% to 85% lighter than the existingprior art shoe box. This reduction in weight produces great costsavings.

The footwear carrier bag is an open bag closed at one end. The hag mayinclude a looped handle along one side of the open end that mates withan opening situated on an opposed side of the open end of the bag. Thebag is so designed to surround and lock. (via the handle and opening)around the shell and/or footwear contained therein. The locking occursby inserting the handle of the bag through the slot and into the cutoutof the shell (aperture of the box). Once locked, the bag handle servesas a carrying handle for the shell and footwear. To open the transportcontainer and access the footwear, a user would unlock the bag handlefrom the cutout and slot along the back or front wall of the shell andpull off the bag while holding or restraining the shell. Accordingly, toclose the transport container, a user would slide the bag over an end(back or front wall) of the shell, pull the bag over the shell, and lockthe bag handle through the slot and cutout of the shell. The hag andshell containing the footwear prevents the footwear from being chafed orrubbing together and preserves them in a new state for the ultimate enduser.

The footwear carrier bag of the present invention is manufactured oflightweight material, such as, for example, soft structured Tyvek,spunbonded polypropylene or natural fibers such as cotton. Preferably,the material is generally water and durst restistant.

The transport container and footwear carrier bag of the presentinvention may be used with footwear such as running and walking shoes;however, it is contemplated that apparel and other consumer merchandisecan be substituted for the footwear discussed herein.

In the drawing embodiments of the invention are shown.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a system comprising a transport boxfor footwear and a bag made of a resilient material,

FIG. 1 a shows a perspective view of the system, wherein the box ispartially drawn out from the bag,

FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of the system according to FIG. 1without the bag, i. e. the box,

FIG. 3 shows a view onto a flat panel element made form paperboard fromwhich the box is assembled,

FIG. 4 shows the flat panel element during assembly of the box in afirst state,

FIG. 5 shows the panel element during assembly of the box in a secondstate,

FIG. 6 shows the finished assembled box,

FIG. 7 shows a perspective view of a part of the box, namely one of theends of the box in enlarged depiction,

FIG. 8 shows the front view of two boxes stacked one upon the other,shows the top plan view of the assembled box,

FIG. 10 shows a perspective view of the system during pulling out thetransport box from the bag,

FIG. 11 shows a perspective view of the box with a pair of shoes duringcarriage,

FIG. 12 shows the system comprising the box and the bag during carriage,

FIG. 13 a,

FIG. 13 b and

FIG. 13 c shows a perspective view of the bag in different stages ofinserting the handle of the bag into an opening and

FIG. 14 shows the bag with a pair of shoes in it during carriage.

In FIG. 1 a system 1 comprising a transport box and/or sales box 2 forfootwear, especially for athletic shoes, and a bag 3 made of a resilientmaterial is shown. The bag 3 has a single handle 11. One of the facesides of the box 2, i. e. the wall 6 in the depicted embodiment, has aslot 10 which extends from one of the sides into the middle of the wall6. As can be seen the handle 11 of the bag 3—what will become apparentlater on in more detail—is feed through the slot 10 until the positionis reached as shown in FIG. 1. A label or tag 19 is fixed, e. g. glued,at the face side of the wall 6. As can be seen thus the label 19 isvisible when the footwear is stored in the box 2 with the bag 3 aroundit.

In FIG. 1 a the box 2 is partially drawn out from the bag 3. In FIG. 2the box 2 is shown without the bag 3 around it. The box 2 has a dividerwall 13 (which is explained later on in detail) which separates thereceiving space 4 of the box 2 into two parts 4′ and 4″.

In FIG. 3 a flat panel element 15 is shown which consist of paperboardmaterial and is punched out from a flat material to obtain the shape asshown in FIG. 1 The flat panel element 15 is folded as can be seen inFIG. 4, FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 for three subsequent assembly steps to formthe box 2. The box 2 has a base panel 5 which forms the bottom of thebox 2. Four side walls 6, 7, 8, and 9 are abutting to the base panel 5.Between the base panel 5 and the walls 6, 7, 8, 9 folds 16 and/orpunched out sections 17 are arranged which facilitate the folding of thewalls 6, 7, 8, 9 relative to the base panel 5 during assembly.

Two of the walls, i. e. the walls 6 and 8, consist of two wall parts 6′,6″ and 8′, 8″ which are folded against each other to reinforce the wall6 and 8, i. e. the walls 6 and 8 have then the double wall thickness.For folding the two parts 6′, 6″ and 8′, 8″ respectively also here folds16 can be arranged.

A further design aspect is the slot 10 for inserting the handle 11 ofthe bag 3. As can be seen in FIG. 3 a respective punched section isarranged in the flat panel element 15. When the wall parts 6′, 6″ arefolded the slot 10 extends from the side end of the wall 6 to the middleof the wall as can be seen in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2. As can be seen the endof the slot 10 ends in a circular shaped aperture 12, as can be alsoseen in FIG. 1 a and FIG. 2. The aperture 12 offers a secure hold of thehandle 11 of the bag 3 and allows also an easy pulling of the box 2during handling (see FIG. 10).

A further design aspect is the divider wall 13 which is engaged toseparate the whole inner receiving space 4 of the box 2 into two parts4′, 4″ (see e. g. FIG. 2). The divider wall 13 is also a part of theflat panel element 15 and is partially punched out during the productionof the flat panel element 15. So, it is easily possible to bend out thedivider wall 13 out of the plane of the base panel 5 to a position wherethe plane of the divider wall 13 is substantially perpendicular to theplane of the base panel 5.

The divider wall 13 does not only divide the receiving space into twoparts but allows also the carriage of the box 2 when the bag 3 is notwrapped around it (see FIG. 11). To facilitate this, the divider wall 13has a cutout 14 which allows a secure grip of the divider wall 13 andthus of the box 2. To said it more specifically: To exclude that afinger is cut during carriage of the box 2 due to a sharp edge of thecutout 14 a preferred solution suggests that a semi-circular shape ispunched into the divider wall 13 (not shown in the figures), wherein theroundness of the shape faces to the bottom side of the box 2. Thissemi-circular punched out part is then bent out of the plane of thedivider wall 13 and can be folded upwards. By doing so the finger whichis carrying the box contacts a round surface and is not jeopardized tobe cut.

As can be seen in FIG. 3 the box and more specifically the base panel 5has a longitudinal axis L. The divider wall 13 is arranged under anangle α relatively to the longitudinal axis L which is approximately 20°in the shown embodiment.

in FIG. 3 it can also be seen that cutouts 22 in the end region of thewall parts 6″ and 8″ are punched. Those cutouts facilitate disassemblyof the box 2 and encourage recycling.

During assembly, at first the divider wall 13 is bent into its position(see FIG. 4). Then the walls are bent into their position; this assemblystep is shown in FIG. 5. The finished assembled box 2 is shown in FIG.6.

In FIG. 7 is can be seen in detail that the corners of the base panel 5as well as the corners of the walls 6, 7, 8, 9 are rounded as nominatedwith reference numeral 18. Those roundings are machined by punching whenproducing the flat panel element 15 (see FIG. 3).

A specifically stiff box is obtained when the flat panel element 15 hasalso flaps 20 connected to the walls 7 and 9. Those flaps can bearranged during assembly of the box between the two layers of the wallparts 6′ and 6″ and 8′ and 8″ respectively. So, the box 2 has a highstiffness which is specifically beneficial when a number of boxes 2 isstacked one upon the other.

This is depicted for two boxes 2 in FIG. 8. Here, a further designdetail becomes apparent. The walls 6, 7, 8, 9 are not extendingperpendicular to the base panel 5 but with a small angle γ (see FIG. 8)against the perpendicular direction of the base panel 5. I. e. the angleβ between the plane of the base panel 5 and the plane of the walls 6, 7,8, 9 is a bit below 90°, specifically between 82° and 86°, so that theangle γ is between 4° and 8°. An angle β of 84° is preferred.

So, stacking is significantly easier if the box 2 is not covered by thebag 3.

FIG. 9 shows the assembled box 2 in a top view. This box can easily bepulled out of the bag 3 by means of the aperture 12 at the end of theslot 10 as shown in. FIG. 10. In FIG. 11 it is shown how the box 2without bag 3 can be carried by means of the divider wall 13. FIG. 12shows the carriages of the system with the box 2 and the bag 3 by meansof the handle 11 of the bag 3.

It is also possible to carry the footwear without the box 2 only withthe bag 3 as shown in. FIG. 13 and FIG. 14. In FIG. 13 it is show inthree subsequent steps how the handle 11 is fed through an opening 21 toclose the bag 3 when the shoes are in it. The handle 11 is arranged atone side of the bag opening. In FIG. 13 a the bag 3 is open and theshoes are easily put in or pulled out. In FIG. 13 b it is shown that toclose the bag 3, the handle 11 is put through the opening 21 on theother side of the bag opening. According to FIG. 13 c the handle 11 isthen pulled through and the opening of the bag 3 is cinched closed.

A special application of the system 1 according to the invention is tolead the handle 11 of the bag 3 from the outer side of the wall 6through the aperture 12 to the inner of the box 2 when the box 2 is inthe bag 3. This allows a good protection against dust during storage ofthe shoes with the system, i. e. in this case the box 2 is better sealedto the environment. Also a barcode of the label 19 is then betteraccessible. This application of the system is especially beneficial whena box 2 is used with has not the slot 10 but only the aperture 12 in oneof the walls (not depicted).

REFERENCE NUMERALS

-   1 System-   2 Transport box and/or sales box-   3 Bag-   4, 4′, 4″ Receiving space Part of receiving space-   5 Base panel-   6 Wall-   6′, 6″ Wall part-   7 Wall-   8 Wall-   8′, 8″ Wall part-   9 Wall-   10 Slot-   11 Handle-   12 Aperture-   13 Divider wall-   14 Cutout-   15 Flat panel element-   16 Fold-   17 Punched out section-   18 Rounded corners-   19 Label/Tag-   20 Flap-   21 Opening-   22 Cutout-   L Longitudinal axis-   α, β, γ Angle

1-30. (canceled)
 31. A system comprising: a transport box and/or salesbox for footwear, and a bag made of a resilient material, wherein thebox has a receiving space for the footwear which is at least partiallydelimited by a base panel and at least two walls extending from the basepanel, wherein at least one wall has an aperture, wherein the bag has areceiving space for receiving the box, wherein the bag has a handle forcarrying the bag, wherein the box and the bag are designed to lead thehandle through the aperture in one of the walls when the box is in thebag, wherein the at least two walls extend to the base panel under anangle (β) between 80° and 89°, wherein the upper end of the walls whichare arranged under the angle (β) converge.
 32. The system of claim 31,wherein at least two walls extend to the base panel under an angle (β)between 82° and 86°.
 33. The system of claim 31, wherein the aperture isarranged in the middle of the wall.
 34. The system of claim 31, whereina slot is arranged in the wall which extends from the aperture to an endof the wall which is remote from the base panel.
 35. The system of claim31, wherein the aperture has a circular or oval or rectangular shapeseen in a direction perpendicular to the wall.
 36. The system of claim31, wherein the box has a divider wall which is connected with the basepanel wherein the divider wall is arranged substantial perpendicular tothe base panel and wherein the divider wall divides the receiving spaceinto two parts.
 37. The system of claim 36, wherein the divider wall ismade of a part of the base panel which part is cut out from the basepanel and which is bent out of the plane of the base panel into a planeperpendicular to the base panel.
 38. The system of claim 36, wherein thedivider wall has at least one cutout in the end region remote from thebase panel which cutout forms an opening in the divider wall forcarrying the box.
 39. The system of claim 36, wherein the box has alongitudinal axis and that the divider wall extends under an angle (α)between 20° and 40° to the longitudinal axis.
 40. The system of claim36, wherein the box is made of a flat panel element, wherein the wallsand the divider wall are formed by bending parts of the flat panelelement out of the plane of the flat panel element and wherein the basepanel is a part of the flat panel element.
 41. The system of claim 40,wherein the flat panel element is a part which is punched out of a flatbase material.
 42. The system of claim 40, wherein at least one of thewalls is made of two wall parts which are formed by the flat panelelement and which are folded together against each other.
 43. The systemof claim 40, wherein folds and/or punched out sections are arrangedbetween the base panel and the walls.
 44. The system of claim 31,wherein the corners of the base panel are rounded.
 45. The system ofclaim 31, wherein the box consists of a paperboard or cardboard.
 46. Abox for footwear, comprising: a receiving space for the footwear whichis at least partially delimited by a base panel and four walls extendingfrom the base panel, wherein the box has a divider wall which isconnected with the base panel, wherein the divider wall is arrangedsubstantial perpendicular to the base panel and wherein the divider walldivides the receiving space into two parts, wherein at least two wallsextend to the base panel under an angle (β) between 80° and 89°, whereinthe upper end of the walls which are arranged under the angle (β)converge.
 47. The box of claim 46, wherein all walls extend to the basepanel under an angle (β) between 82° and 86°.
 48. The box of claim 46,wherein the divider wall is made of a part of the base panel which partis cut out from the base panel and which is bent out of the plane of thebase panel into a plane perpendicular to the base panel.
 49. The box ofclaim 46, wherein the divider wall has at least one cutout in the endregion remote from the base panel which cutout forms an opening in thedivider wall for carrying the box.
 50. The box of claim 46, wherein thebox has a longitudinal axis and that the divider wall extends under anangle (α) between 20° and 40° to the longitudinal axis.